


Friends That Make Your World

by AuthorToBeNamedLater



Series: Keeping Up With The Raptors [26]
Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hockey, Alternate Universe - Sports, Baseball, Bromance, Gen, Hockey, Male Bonding, Raptors, Seattle, Seattle Mariners, Sports
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-02
Updated: 2014-06-02
Packaged: 2018-02-03 02:18:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1727474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AuthorToBeNamedLater/pseuds/AuthorToBeNamedLater
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Wherever you are, it is your friends that make your world." - William James</p>
            </blockquote>





	Friends That Make Your World

**Author's Note:**

> I just got engaged (yay) which means I will have even less time to write (boo). So I'm trying to push ahead as quickly as I can and at least get these guys out of their inaugural season.

Nik Bakstrom was lounging on the bed in his hotel room, idly watching a baseball game between the Seattle Mariners and Detroit Tigers and flicking through his phone. The Seattle Raptors' newest point man was bored out of his mind.

The Raptors had left for a short road swing right after Nik arrived. It was easy to forget his family and a good chunk of his possessions were still in Ottawa when the team was on the road. Everyone was living out of a suitcase and sleeping in a hotel room. But today the Raptors had a full day off—no game, no practice. It was one of those days Nik would have relished a few weeks ago. Now, though, it just left him feeling empty. He'd spent the day getting his new car registered and inspected. Then he'd talked to Christine about her plans to come visit and look at houses over the kids' school vacation in April. Then in the absence of anything better to do he'd run four miles.

April was only four weeks away but it seemed like a long, long time to live alone in the Extended Stay.

A knock at the door startled Nik out of his thoughts. He opened it without much thought and blinked when he saw Tim Keller standing with a pizza and a six-pack of Guinness.

“Afternoon,” Keller greeted.

“Hi,” Nik returned. “What...what's up?”

“Janika went on a girls' weekend,” Tim explained. “Took Vienna with her. I was going a little nuts and figured you might be too.”

“Oh,” Nik said. “Um, yeah, come on in.” He stood aside to let Keller into the room.

“Baseball, eh?” Keller asked.

Nik shut the door. “Yeah.”

“Seriously?”

Nik quirked an eyebrow at his new teammate. “Not a fan?”

“It's so slow, man!” Keller lamented.

“It's relaxing,” Nik corrected. “I don't know. I guess it reminds me of when I was a kid. I used to watch the Blue Jays with my dad all the time.”

Keller shook his head and set the pizza on the desk. “Wasn't a lot of baseball to watch in Calgary. Any plates around here?”

“Yeah, sure.” Nik stepped into the mini-kitchen and grabbed two plates out of the cabinet. “You're from Calgary?”

“Well, Cochrane, technically,” Keller answered. “But close enough.” He took the plates and set about dishing up the pizza.

Nik opened a can of beer and took a sip. Not his favorite, but better than nothing for sure. He watched the TV for a moment as the Mariners got a base hit.

“These your kids?” Keller asked.

Nik looked at the picture on the nightstand. It was from the family photos the Bakstroms had done a few months ago. “That's them.”

Keller picked up the frame, looked at the photo, and then back at Nik. “You're sure about that.”

Nik laughed. “Pretty darn.”

“Not one of them looks anything like you.”

The Tigers' pitcher walked the next batter.

“Hey, you marry this woman?” Nik grabbed his phone and pulled up a photo of Christine. “You hope your kids look like her.”

Keller nodded at the screen. “You done well, my friend.” He dished up a slice of pizza and handed it to Nik. “So where did you find a woman like that to marry you?”

Nik took a bite of the pizza. “You really want to know?”

Keller sat in the desk chair. “Thrill me.”

The Mariners' batter sent a hit off the second baseman's glove and into center field. Seattle now had the bases loaded.

"She was my brother's babysitter."

Keller nearly choked. “You're kidding.”

“Nope.”

“Your brother's...how old is your brother?”

“He's 21,” Nik answered. “He's 13 years younger than me. But yes, Christine was his babysitter. We dated all through high school and got married while I was still in the Bruins' system.”

The Tigers' catcher jogged up to the mound, obviously trying to settle his pitcher.

“So how'd you meet Janika?” Nik asked.

“I was playing in Austria during the lockout,” Keller said.

“Is that why your daughter is Vienna?”

“Yup,” Keller took a swig of his beer.

The catcher went back to home plate.

“ _And he winds, kicks, delivers...swing and there's a line shot to center, it's going back, it's way back, and it's GONE! A grand slam!”_

“See?” Keller said. “All this time we've been talking, that's how long it took for that to happen.” He pointed at the TV.

“That's the beauty of baseball,” Nik explained. “It takes its time in a world that's always in a hurry.”

Keller took a long sip of beer. “That's deep, man.”

Nik laughed around a bite of pizza.

The TV showed a replay of the grand slam and Nik asked “Hey, Keller? Why'd you come over here and bring pizza and beer?”

“Cause I've been here,” Keller said. He swiveled around in the office chair to look at Nik. “I had to live in a hotel when I got traded here. One night I was sitting around wishing Janika and Vienna were here and Rybes showed up with pizza and beer. It was great. You know, took my mind off things.”

Nik idly fiddled with a napkin while he regarded his teammate. “Thanks.”

Keller lifted his beer bottle as if to say “No problem.”

The game cut to a commercial break. “Isn't there some hockey game we could watch?”

“We're hockey players,” Nik said.

“So?”

“You wanna watch work?”

“Is that what you think of it?”

“I get enough hockey at practice. And games.” Nik took another bite of pizza.

“Buzzkill,” Keller grumbled.

Nik chuckled.

Pizza, beer, baseball and for a little while, not sitting alone in a hotel. Nik hadn't realized it, but this was exactly what he needed.

 


End file.
